The Kenwood Collection

The Kenwood Collection, formerly Kenwood Town Place, is a shopping center in Kenwood, Ohio, United States, between Interstate 71 and Kenwood Towne Centre.

The Kenwood Collection
Kenwood Towne Place in 2017
LocationKenwood, Ohio
Coordinates39.204731°N 84.373843°W / 39.204731; -84.373843
ManagementJeffrey R. Anderson Real Estate
OwnerPhillips Edison
Total retail floor area336,885
No. of floors8
Websitethekenwoodcollection.com

History

Kenwood Towne Place was a $175 million development project funded by Bear Creek Capital, Neyer Holding Corporation and Dov Limited. Groundbreaking for Kenwood Towne Place happened on April 4, 2007.[1] Kenwood Towne Place also includes a $33 million public parking garage funded by bonds underwritten by the Port of Greater Cincinnati Development Authority.[2]

The original anchor tenants were supposed to be The Container Store, Crate & Barrel, Ethan Allen, Kroger, and LA Fitness. In March 2008, Borders Books announced that it would open a store in the complex, stating "It's going to be one of their new prototype stores, which I think they're doing so many across the country. It's a higher-end bookstore experience."[3] It was set to be a 28,000-square-foot (2,600 m2) Borders new-concept store.

In March 2008, UBS Financial Services Inc. signed a deal to lease 32,000 square feet (3,000 m2) of the office space on the top floor.[4]

Kroger opened a Fresh Fare store on October 26, 2008.[5]

The Container Store opened on November 8, 2008 [6][7]

Crate & Barrel opened on November 20, 2008 [8]

On April 15, 2009, Mitchell's Salon & Day Spa opened.[9]

Bank of America bought property at a Hamilton County Sheriff's auction in July 2012 for $27.5 million and then sold it Phillips Edison. [10]

Developer Phillips Edison changed the name of Kenwood Town Place to the "Kenwood Collection" in 2013.[11]

Financial trouble

At the end of December 2008 and the start of January 2009, several contractors filed almost $5 million in liens against Bear Creek Capital's Kenwood Towne Place.[12]

In late January 2009, problems with the development project began to surface, as more than two dozen liens were filed that had a combined total value of $17 million over a two-week period.[13] While the liens were being placed, the complex was partially under construction and partially occupied by several stores, leaving them in a state of limbo.

The lenders stopped making disbursements on all parts of the project until all of the liens had been cleared up; in February 2009, there were over 80 outstanding liens.[14]

On February 20, 2009, it was reported that the first subcontractor filed a lawsuit for $373,000 against Kenwood Towne Place LLC and Bear Creek Construction LLC. The lawsuit includes claims for breach of contract and unjust enrichment.[15]

Cincinnati Councilman Chris Bortz proposed and supported a bailout of $1.8 million to assist some of the small businesses that are stuck in the current financial problems of the developer.

Bank of America filed a foreclosure lawsuit in the Hamilton County Common Pleas Court against Bear Creek Capital and the developers of Kenwood Towne Place in May 2009. Bank of America was seeking repayment of $81.3 million in loans and a sheriff's sale of the location.[16] LA Fitness became the first tenant to sue the developers for $600,000 in unpaid construction costs.[17]

Kenwood Towne Place was placed into receivership on June 9, 2009. The receiver was a developer out of Cleveland[18]

Criminal investigation

One of the subcontractors of the development project, Kraft Electrical Contracting, reported that he had spoken with both the FBI and Hamilton County Sheriff.[19]

The FBI has taken over the Criminal Investigation was first opened by the Hamilton County Sheriff Department. The FBI has started to question people who worked on the project.[20]

On Nov. 16, 2012 Matt Daniels was indicted on 25 conspiracy and fraud counts. It was alleged that he used the money for personal gain.[21][22]

Former Bear Creek CFO's Tina Schmidt plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit bank fraud in connection to the Kenwood Towne Place development.[23] In her plea agreement she claimed she "“knowingly and intentionally worked with other people – including individuals identified herein by the initials M.D. and A.T. – to executive a scheme to defraud federally-insured financial institutions – namely Bank of America and its predecessor entity, LaSalle Bank.”"[24]

On December 20, 2013 Matt Daniels the former Kenwood Towne Place developer was found not guilty on all charges.[25] Daniles had faced 23 counts of fraud in relation to the failed project. The two other charges he was facing from the 25 counts he was indicted on where dismissed.[26]

Civil litigation

The judge in the foreclosure action recused himself after speaking with Ohio Supreme Court; he had found that he held stock in one of the creditors, Fifth Third Bank. Judge Steven Martin was replaced by Judge Beth Myers.[27]

The case, which has become one of the largest cases in Hamilton County Court of Common Pleas, got even more complicated. On October 2, 2009, motions were filed which alleged "large-scale fraud" by Bear Creek Capital. The same motion also alleged that Bear Creek Capital and Bank of America had engaged in improper relationships.[28] Judge Beth Myers denied a motion of receiver Hank Menniinger requesting to resign after he had been unable to secure loans to address health and safety issues. Judge Myers ordered that Bank of America fund $263,000 in repairs.[29] However, another hearing was held on December 21, 2009. Judge Myers allowed Attorney Hank Menninger to step down as receiver for the project, and appointed Frank Hertge, who was nominated by Bank of America.[30] Bank of America has dropped its challenge of the receivership of Kenwood Towne Center attorney Hank Menninger. Hamilton County Judge Beth Myers ordered that the receiver be paid 80% of money due for the daily management of operating the buildings.[31]

Gregory Scheper, Bear Creek's director of acquisition, filed a lawsuit against Bear Creek for $1.8 million. The cause for actions in the suit are racketeering, conspiracy, and fraud.[32]

News was broken that the mediation that was underway in October 2010 failed, and the matter is moving forward to trial in February 2011. This case is set to be the largest and longest trial in the history of Hamilton County, Ohio.[33]

In July of 2013 news reported that there was a $5 million conclusion to the litigation. Investor Tim Baird entered into a consent decree judgement.[34]

Recent problems

After Bear Creek Capital ran out of money, work stopped on finishing the project while the remaining stores struggled to stay open.

In March 2009 Sycamore Township Fire Chief William Jetter threatened to revoke the site's occupancy certificate if a list of violations were not fixed, including problems with the sprinkler and fire alarm system not working.[35]

Hamilton County Building Commissioner Tonia Edwards issued an order, which highlighted eight items that needed to be fixed in order for the temporary occupancy certificate to remain in effect.[36]

Vicki Lang, Manager of public relation for Crate and Barrel Stated: "We are collaborating with our fellow Kenwood Towne Place retailers to work through this challenging situation. We want to assure Crate and Barrel customers that we remain committed to serving them at this location. We invite shoppers to come and see for themselves – Crate & Barrel is alive and well at Kenwood Towne Place!" [37]

Kroger closed its store in Kenwood Towne Place on May 30, 2010. Kroger stated this is the first time that it had to close a new store.[38][39]

Adding to the ongoing trouble for this development is the fact that the Current Fire Chief has declared that without work, the site is becoming a bigger fire hazard every day. The Fire Chief has stated that the building and other items on the site which could cause problems for the public.[40]

Use of License Plate Readers

Brookfield Properties uses Vigilant Technologies License Plate Reader technology according to them for " for the purposes of enforcing our Parking Program and for Crime Preventionand Law Enforcement Investigations. LPR data is NOT used by the mall or third parties for marketing solicitations or target marketing."[41] As part of the parking program they say that it is help find "non-customers and their vehicles, examples include commuters, nearby office building workers, students at nearby schools." The data collected by the readers included "license plate number, a photograph of the license plate (which may include parts of vehicle surrounding the license plate), the GPS location of the vehicle, and the time of date of the read. This same information can be observed by any person walking through the parking lot."

The Electronic Frontier Foundation released a report talking about how some shopping centers are spying for an ICE contractor.[42] The contractor Vigilant Solution issued a press release disputing the EFF report claiming that the report from the EFF was false.Crandall, Susan (2018-07-18). "EFF: Stop Creating Fake News and Scaring People!" (Press release). Retrieved 2019-09-24.


Current Stores/Places
  • Crunch Fitness
  • Whole Foods
  • Crate and Barrel opened in 2008
  • The Container Store opened in 2008
  • Old Navy
  • L.L. Bean
  • Ethan Allen
  • Mitchell Gold + Bob Williams
  • Envision Cinemas
  • CycleBar
  • Mitchell's Salon and Day Spa opened in 2009
  • Pies & Pints Pizzeria
  • Olio Italian
  • Matt The Miller's Tavern

Future Stores/Places

Former Stores/Places
  • LA Fitness opened in 2009 and closed in 2012/13
  • Kroger opened in 2008 and closed in May 2010
  • Z Gallerie opened in 2017/18 and closed in 2019
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References
  1. "Cincinnati News, Weather, Traffic, Sports - WCPO.com - 9 On Your Side - WCPO-TV". Wcpo.com. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  2. "Cincinnati mulls contractor bailout at Kenwood Towne Place". Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  3. "Borders joining Kenwood Towne Place project". American City Business Journals. March 10, 2008.
  4. Houck, Jeanne (June 17, 2016). "Kenwood Collection office tower 90 percent-plus leased". The Cincinnati Enquirer.
  5. Archived September 29, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  6. "Kenwood Container Store hiring". Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  7. "Container Store's opening organized". Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  8. "Container Store's opening organized". Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  9. "Mitchell's to reopen at Kenwood Towne Place". Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  10. Thompson, Ann. "Troubled Kenwood Towne Place has a new name and marketing plan". WVXU. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  11. Thompson, Ann. "Troubled Kenwood Towne Place has a new name and marketing plan". WVXU. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  12. "Liens pile up at Bear Creek's Kenwood project". Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  13. "Kenwood Towne Place, Newport Pavilion face liens". Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  14. "With Kenwood Towne Place project still dormant, retailers rethink options". Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  15. "Contractor sues at Towne Place". Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  16. "Bank of America files foreclosure suit against Kenwood Towne Place". Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  17. "Kenwood Towne Place sued by tenant". Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  18. "Kenwood Towne Place to enter receivership Tuesday". Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  19. "As Cincinnati's Towne Place contractors step up their efforts to collect, one says FBI and sheriff investigating". Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  20. "A look inside a Kenwood Towne Place deposition". Cincinnati Business Courier. 7 February 2011. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  21. "Former Kenwood Towne Place developer indicted deposition". WVXU. 2012-11-16. Retrieved 2019-09-24.
  22. "KENWOOD MANAGING DIRECTOR INDICTED FOR FRAUD, CONSPIRACY" (Press release). Cincinnati. United States Attorney's Office Southern District of Ohio. 2012-11-16. Retrieved 2019-09-24.
  23. Demeropolis, Tom (24 May 2013). "Senior Staff Reporter". Cincinnati Business Courier. Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  24. Demeropolis, Tom (24 May 2013). "Senior Staff Reporter". Cincinnati Business Courier. Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  25. "Jury finds KTP developer Matt Daniels not guilty". Cincinnati Business Courier. 2013-12-20. Retrieved 2019-09-24.
  26. Demeropolis, Tom (24 Jan 2014). "Matt Daniels: Ready to get back to work". Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  27. https://web.archive.org/web/20110929161954/http://www.wlwt.com/money/20265206/detail.html. Archived from the original on September 29, 2011. Retrieved December 21, 2009. Missing or empty |title= (help)
  28. "Kenwood Towne Place investor files suit". American City Business Journals. September 28, 2009.
  29. "Kenwood Towne Place receiver ordered to stay on". American City Business Journals. December 7, 2009.
  30. "Bank of America names Kenwood Towne Place receiver". American City Business Journals. December 21, 2009.
  31. "Bank of America to drop receivership challenge at Kenwood Towne Place". American City Business Journals. March 15, 2010.
  32. "- Cincinnati.com - cincinnati.com". Cincinnati.com. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  33. "Local business - Cincinnati.com - cincinnati.com". Cincinnati.com. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  34. "Bank of America, Kenwood Towne Place investors reach settlement". Cincinnati Business Journal. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  35. Archived September 29, 2011, at the Wayback Machine
  36. "County orders repairs at Kenwood Towne Place". Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  37. "KyPost News, Northern Kentucky News, Video - WCPO.com". Kypost.com. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  38. "Local business - Cincinnati.com - cincinnati.com". Cincinnati.com. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  39. "Kroger closing Kenwood Towne Place store". Cincinnati Business Courier. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  40. "Cincinnati Communities". Communjitypress.cincinnati.com. Retrieved 20 September 2014.
  41. "Frequently Asked Questions about our License Plate Readers Brookfield Properties Retail centers using Vigilant Technologies" (PDF). Kenwood Town Center. Kenwood Town Center. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  42. Maass, Dave. "California Shopping Centers Are Spying for an ICE Contractor". EFF. Electronic Frontier Foundation. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
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